A businessman, identified as N.M. Paaris, has been sentenced to six months of imprisonment, suspended for five years, after being found guilty of spreading a misleading voice clip about former Minister Cader Mastan on various social media platforms. In addition to the suspended sentence, Paaris was fined Rs. 5,000 for the offence by Colombo Chief Magistrate Thilina Gamage. The Court also directed him to remove all defamatory content he had posted against Mastan from all social media platforms. The judgment was issued following a case filed by Mastan under the provisions of the Online Safety Act 2024. Previously, the Court had imposed an unconditional gag order on Paaris. Former State Minister Mastan was represented in Court by President’s Counsel Mohamed Ali Sabry.
Bharti Airtel signs multi-year, multi-billion deal with..... for 4G, 5G network expansion
Business Memoranda: 11/27/2024
Just days before the traditional clatter of cutlery and blessings echo across Fort Worth, Letha Roblow hosts a special feast. The scent of turkey and rich gravy mingles with the laughter of children inside the Rosedale V Head Start & Child Development Center in southeast Fort Worth’s Stop Six neighborhood. For many, today is their Thanksgiving. “We had this menu that had turkey, and it had dressing, and it had rolls and green beans,” Roblow said. “And, we’d talk to the children and sit and eat with the children and they would talk about the turkey. They were so amazed that they could get a turkey, with the dressing in the center.” Overseeing the setup, Roblow’s eyes reflect the joy in the room, she said. The feast — which this year occurred on Friday, Nov. 22 — is a lesson in gratitude for these children, she said, delivered by someone who has made nurturing them her life’s work. Roblow, now 76 years old and campus director of the center, grew up in Stop Six herself. Her own childhood was marked by simplicity and a tight community, she said. “Stop Six used to be, just more or less, like a little area or enclave,” Roblow said. “Everybody knew everybody.” Get essential daily news for the Fort Worth area. Sign up for insightful, in-depth stories — completely free. This environment shaped her understanding of child care, Roblow said. One element stands out among the rest — Roblow remembers the Blanche family station wagon cruising Ramey Avenue in front of Stop Six’s Bunche Park. “Mr. and Mrs. Blanche would always come by and drive up and down the street in this old station wagon, picking up children to go to their school,” Roblow said. This was before Fort Worth schools were desegregated, she said, and the Blanche Head Start and Child Development Center , which now sits at 2900 Stalcup Road in Fort Worth, was in its infancy as a private initiative. Some Stop Six families couldn’t afford luxuries like day care. “We didn’t get to go, because my parents couldn’t afford it,” she said. “We would wave at the kids that were able to go, and we’d play and we’d always think, ‘what are they doing in that school?’” The ritual left a deep impression. This image of the Blanche family station wagon, a symbol of what that family provided to Stop Six children, instilled in Roblow a lasting appreciation for educational opportunities and community support. “We played our own school at Bunche Park,” she said. Gathering with other neighborhood children, Roblow improvised classrooms and lessons beside a grassy knoll at the southeast Fort Worth park. More than 50 years after Roblow was hired in her first child care role, she now strives to replicate the same sense of community and opportunity at Rosedale V, ensuring no child feels left out or behind. As children gather around tables adorned with paper cornucopias and colorful plates, Roblow serves turkey, with a side of stories from her past. “We didn’t have many things to do back in those days,” she said. “We would play at the park, and on Sunday, they would send us to church.” Today’s challenges are different from the ones Roblow faced growing up. She highlighted increasing mental health and behavioral issues, even among children younger than 5 years old, and emphasized maintaining her center as a sanctuary of safety and understanding. “Every child in Stop Six deserves to feel safe and supported,” she said. Last Friday’s Thanksgiving feast was one way to achieve that, she said. As the meal concludes and children scamper away to play or read a book, Roblow hopes they’ve been instilled with the values of gratitude, community and mutual support — values that will help Stop Six continue to thrive and prosper, she said. Since the Blanche Head Start & Child Development Center moved into a new building in 1986, the surrounding area has grown immensely, she said. “Slowly, slowly, they started building houses across the street, they started building stores that were not there,” she said. “I see a big improvement from where I came from as a kid.” And the wealth in Stop Six continues to grow, she said. She hopes improved livelihoods lead to improved access to quality child care, and that better opportunities inspire young adults in the neighborhood to work in child care. “To put it candidly, we need more of me,” Roblow said. “We need more individuals in child care who aren’t just providers, but who are genuinely invested in the welfare and future of our children.” After 55 years in Fort Worth child care, Roblow said she is optimistic about where the city is headed. She sees every day as an opportunity to instill those values that resonate deeply on Thanksgiving and beyond. Kara Waddell is the CEO of Child Care Associates, Tarrant County’s largest nonprofit organization focused on working with child care facilities. As she reflected on Roblow’s service, Waddell recalled an insight she heard directly from poet Maya Angelou when Waddell was in college. “Ms. Angelou said, ‘I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel,’” Waddell said. “The children and families touched by Ms. Roblow over the last 55 years have never forgotten how she makes them feel appreciated, empowered and loved. Ms. Roblow’s ongoing commitment to young children, especially in the historic Stop Six community, makes her an education giant in my mind and so many others.” And no matter what a family’s means, no matter the day on the calendar, Thanksgiving is always worth celebrating, Roblow said. Matthew Sgroi is an education reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at matthew.sgroi@fortworthreport.org or @matthewsgroi1 . At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here . Your support makes TWICE the impact today. As November draws to a close , time is running out to double your impact. Thanks to the generosity of the Nicholas Martin Jr. Family Foundation, every dollar you give will be matched—up to $15,000. Will you give today to help trusted, local reporting thrive in Fort Worth and Tarrant County? Related Fort Worth Report is certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative for adhering to standards for ethical journalism . Republish This Story Republishing is free for noncommercial entities. Commercial entities are prohibited without a licensing agreement. Contact us for details. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License . Look for the "Republish This Story" button underneath each story. To republish online, simply click the button, copy the html code and paste into your Content Management System (CMS). Do not copy stories straight from the front-end of our web-site. You are required to follow the guidelines and use the republication tool when you share our content. The republication tool generates the appropriate html code. You can’t edit our stories, except to reflect relative changes in time, location and editorial style. You can’t sell or syndicate our stories. Any web site our stories appear on must include a contact for your organization. If you use our stories in any other medium — for example, newsletters or other email campaigns — you must make it clear that the stories are from the Fort Worth Report. In all emails, link directly to the story at fortworthreport.org and not to your website. If you share our stories on social media, please tag us in your posts using @FortWorthReport on Facebook and @FortWorthReport on Twitter. You have to credit Fort Worth Report. Please use “Author Name, Fort Worth Report” in the byline. If you’re not able to add the byline, please include a line at the top of the story that reads: “This story was originally published by Fort Worth Report” and include our website, fortworthreport.org . You can’t edit our stories, except to reflect relative changes in time, location and editorial style. Our stories may appear on pages with ads, but not ads specifically sold against our stories. You can’t sell or syndicate our stories. You can only publish select stories individually — not as a collection. Any web site our stories appear on must include a contact for your organization. If you share our stories on social media, please tag us in your posts using @FortWorthReport on Facebook and @FortWorthReport on Twitter. by Matthew Sgroi, Fort Worth Report November 27, 2024White House pressing Ukraine to draft 18-year-olds so it has enough troops to battle Russia
Chris Hemsworth ‘s wife Elsa Pataky shared a rare family photo from the holidays! The 48-year-old model took to social media on Thursday (December 26) to offer a glimpse at her family’s Christmas celebration. The new photo featured all three of her and Chris ‘ kids – 12-year-old daughter India and 10-year-old twin sons Sasha and Tristan . Keep reading to find out more... Elsa shared the new picture on Instagram. In it, the entire family is wearing matching hooded pajamas that feature the Grinch. India , Sasha and Tristan are standing right behind her as she snaps the selfie, and Chris is in the background closer to their Christmas tree. “Hope you all had a great Christmas,” she wrote in the caption. This is the first time that Elsa has shared a pics of the family since September, when she uploaded adorable photos to celebrate Father’s Day in Australia . Sasha and Tristan have joined their parents at red carpet events, including the premiere of Transformers One and their dad’s Walk of Fame Star Ceremony . India attended the latter but opted out of taking photos. A post shared by Elsa Pataky (@elsapataky)Davis scores 15, Southern Illinois knocks off Florida Tech 81-54